Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1887-12-29
The Art Of rPsananshlp.

whsnes dld thls uondroas nystic art arise, y
ofpainting spssoh and sps.lng 10 the eyes;
That Ne, b tra1Ina magic llnes, are taught
How both 70 color and enbody thought.
Whence IL came; what its nature and value
and whittier its dsvelopmsnt tends, are ques-
lions that often occur to the thinking mind.
To trace It back, seeking for its origin would
very soon lead 10 mysterious paths, and only
prove more vexatious becsuse Of time lost and
no definite result obtained. There are many
theories, all bassd on imperfect and often
unreliable records so obscure and conflicting
that the actual knowledge 10 be gained does
not compensate for the time spent in
sitting them. Its practical value is obvious,
and its requisition is palpably q matter Of
the greatest importance TO every one, no
matter in what condition of life. As has
been well said, II is "the record of the past,
the regulator of the future, the soul of COM
meroe aud the messenger of thought" With
out knowledge Of this art the events Of his
tory would have been entirely dependant on
traditionary descent, and much, therefore, of
great value lost beyond hope of recovery.
Not only this but almost endless litigation
must of necessity .ensue because Of the fick-
leness of mems memories. 1t is indeed the
very soul of commerce, recording not only
what is Of present use, but what in time to
come may be Of priceless value. As vehicle
of thought between man and man; in busi-
ness as well as social relations, who can esti-
mate its Importance. Through the medium
of the pen missiyes Of love, sympathy and
coincidence, cementing friendship and reviv-
ing pleasant memories, traverse continents
and make voyages to every quarter of the
globe.
That style of p enmansnip which can be
rapi dly written, combining the fewest lines
in given form to make plain the writer's
meaning and at the same time make neat,
work is certain to be the popular style in the
near future. No country in the world at the
present thine can boast of so many fine
penmen as our own, and nowhere is the art
more thoroughly taught, as it has been made
a branch of common education to such an ex-
tent that poor writers are fast becoming the
exception. The organization of commercial
colleges throughout our country gave an inn
petus to this art as branch OF education that
helped to place it at once high in Importance
in the estimation of the business community,
SO that now no young man can consider his
education complete, nor himself fully equip
ped for business, unless he can write an easy,
rapid and legible hand How to acquire
good hand writing is then the question which
naturally arises. Most people admire a
good penmanship and would like to write
well, but it seems to them that their case is
hopeless; that only those who are gifted by
nature with genius for such work can ever
succeed. While all must admit that persons
this natural genios will succeed
much better, 1t is mainly because the inher-
ent love and inspires imrels them to devote
more time to its cultivation, for no one with
out great labor and careful painstaking in
addition to, natural ability, should ever ex-
pect success in any art or science; and this is
what is lost sight of or not fully comprehend
ed by all who claim that success is possible
only to those possessed of natures talent.
They seem to have gained the impression that
to be thus endowed is the only thing necessary
to an accomplishment, while in fact it is sim
ply the foundation on which attainment can
be reached and that only by hard work. We
claim that nine persons in every ten, no mat
ter what the natural bent of their mind may
be, can become by careful practice what the
majority of people would term excellent PEN
men. We say by careful practice. and we
mean just this: First, that you have before
you good copy; next, that you select good
material, and then practice carefully
noting the analysis of the letters. The prin-
ciples which enter into their construction, in
a word, practice intelligsntly, criticising your
work frequently by comparison with the
copy. Do this persistently and psrsevering-
ly and your success is assured. 0. L.
Napoleon, Ohio, Dec. "a, 1887.
In connection with his stock of drnos and